Numeral expressions do more than count. Ordinals locate a referent in a sequence (la tercera porta), fractions select part of a whole (mig pastís, un terç del pressupost), and multipliers describe a factor or a structure (una dosi tripla, una triple aliança). All three interact with articles, agreement, and word order.
English often leaves a numeral unchanged and relies on position. Catalan makes more distinctions visible: primer/primera/primers/primeres agrees, dues hores i mitja reflects the feminine noun hora, and specialist usage may mark a magnitude as tripla while a three-part classification must remain triple.
Compact form guide
| Type | Masculine singular | Feminine singular | Masculine plural | Feminine plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ordinal 1 | primer | primera | primers | primeres |
| ordinal 2 | segon | segona | segons | segones |
| ordinal 5 | cinquè | cinquena | cinquens | cinquenes |
| half | mig | mitja | mitjos | mitges |
| one third / third part | un terç | una tercera part | dos terços | dues terceres parts |
| threefold magnitude | triple | triple / tripla | triples | triples |
Fractional noun phrases commonly use a masculine substantivized denominator: un terç, dos terços. The transparent construction with feminine part instead uses the ordinary agreeing ordinal: una tercera part, dues terceres parts. The lexical noun terça names a traditional unit of weight; it is not the normal feminine counterpart of fractional terç in contemporary prose.
Les dues primeres corredores van completar les tres últimes voltes en menys de mitja hora.
The first two runners completed the last three laps in less than half an hour.
Here dues–primeres–corredores and tres–últimes–voltes show feminine plural agreement across several words, while mitja agrees with singular hora.
Ordinals agree and normally precede the noun
The first four ordinals are primer, segon, tercer, and quart. From cinquè onward, the productive forms end in masculine -è and feminine -ena: sisè/sisena, vintè/vintena, vint-i-tresè/vint-i-tresena. Their plurals are -ens/-enes: cinquens, cinquenes.
La primera reunió va ser breu, però les dues reunions següents van durar hores.
The first meeting was brief, but the following two meetings lasted for hours.
Viuen al vint-i-tresè pis i treballen a la vint-i-quatrena planta.
They live on the twenty-third floor and work on the twenty-fourth floor.
The unusual-looking vint-i-quatrena follows regular formation from vint-i-quatre. Ordinals preserve the cardinal's hyphens. Spelling changes also occur in cinquè (not cincè), novè, and desè.
An ordinal normally comes before the noun: la segona ronda, el quart intent. Postnominal placement occurs in names, headings, and deliberately formal enumeration (formal), especially in administrative writing: capítol tercer, disposició addicional quarta. It is not the neutral everyday order.
The article changes how the rank is presented
Use the definite article when a known sequence makes the position unique: la primera visita, el segon capítol. Use an indefinite article when the phrase introduces another occurrence or one possible item with that rank: una segona visita often means “a second/another visit.”
La segona entrevista serà amb la directora.
The second interview will be with the director.
Ens han demanat una segona entrevista.
They've asked us for a second interview.
The minimal difference is discourse status. La segona locates an identifiable member of an established series; una segona introduces an additional event. English also has this contrast, but learners often copy article choice without noticing what the speaker assumes is already identifiable.
With a cardinal and an ordinal, the neutral order is determiner + cardinal + ordinal + noun: les tres primeres pàgines, els dos últims trens. The cardinal tells how many members are selected; the ordinal defines their position in the larger sequence.
Només he llegit els quatre primers capítols del llibre.
I've only read the first four chapters of the book.
Rank versus label: ordinal or cardinal?
An ordinal gives a position in an ordered set: la segona pàgina means the page that comes second. A postnominal cardinal can instead function as an identifying label: la pàgina dos means “page 2.” Label cardinals are invariant, so use dos, not feminine dues, and u, not un.
La segona pàgina és en blanc; la informació comença a la pàgina tres.
The second page is blank; the information starts on page three.
The distinction is especially useful for rooms, bus lines, platforms, chapters, and numbered forms: l'habitació dos, la línia cinc, el formulari u. Do not assume that every English number after a noun should agree.
Mig and fractional parts
Before a noun, mig/mitja means half a unit and normally appears without an indefinite article: mig pa, mitja ampolla, mig quilòmetre, mitja hora. The noun and any adjective keep their own agreement.
Queda mitja ampolla oberta i mig paquet obert a la cuina.
There's half an open bottle and half an open packet left in the kitchen.
With an identified whole, Catalan often uses la meitat de: la meitat del pastís, la meitat d'aquesta ampolla. This is not the same noun-phrase structure as bare mig pastís.
Vaig menjar mig pastís, però en Pol es va menjar la meitat del pastís de xocolata.
I ate half a cake, but Pol ate half of the chocolate cake.
For measurements made of whole units plus a half, mig/mitja agrees with the repeated but omitted unit: dos quilos i mig but dues hores i mitja.
La caminada dura dues hores i mitja i fa dotze quilòmetres i mig.
The walk lasts two and a half hours and is twelve and a half kilometers long.
Other fractions usually use a cardinal numerator and a substantivized denominator: un terç, dos terços, tres cinquens. A following de identifies the whole: dos terços dels vots, tres cinquens de la superfície. Alternatively, use the agreeing noun part: una tercera part, dues cinquenes parts.
Dues terceres parts de les alumnes han aprovat, però només un terç dels alumnes ha lliurat el projecte.
Two thirds of the female students have passed, but only one third of the male students has submitted the project.
The verb may agree with the head of the fraction phrase or with the interpreted plurality depending on structure and emphasis. This page keeps the focus on the internal noun phrase; see Subject Agreement for clause-level agreement.
Multipliers: factor versus composition
Doble, triple, quàdruple, quíntuple and the higher learned forms express multiplication. Doble has the same form for masculine and feminine. From triple upward, both the gender-invariable form and a feminine in -a are available when the multiplier gives the magnitude of a feminine quantity: una dosi triple/tripla, una durada quàdruple/quàdrupla. The feminine forms are relatively uncommon and are especially associated with specialist language.
El metge li ha reduït la dosi tripla a una dosi doble.
The doctor has reduced the triple dose to a double dose.
When the expression means “made up of three/four members,” the learned multiplier is conventionally invariant: la triple aliança, una quàdruple confrontació. Compare the context-sensitive pair:
Necessitem una dosi tripla per arribar a la mateixa concentració.
We need a dose three times as large to reach the same concentration.
El museu prepara una triple exposició sobre pintura, fotografia i cinema.
The museum is preparing a three-part exhibition on painting, photography, and film.
The first is a magnitude and therefore permits feminine tripla, though triple is also grammatical there; the second classifies the exhibition as having three components and must keep triple. Everyday Catalan often avoids high learned multipliers and says cinc vegades més gran or sis vegades la quantitat.
Spanish is a poor shortcut here: its invariant triple does not reveal Catalan's optional specialist feminine tripla in a magnitude phrase. The decisive contrast is that compositional una triple aliança cannot become una tripla aliança.
Regional and conventional forms
The agreement system is shared across the standards. Lexical forms can vary: (regional: Valencian) huitè/huitena corresponds to Central vuitè/vuitena. Both are standard within their varieties. Keep one variety coherent in the same passage.
Latin-based alternatives such as quint, sèptim, octau, and vigèsim occur (formal) in specialized terminology and established names. In general prose, prefer cinquè, setè, vuitè, and vintè. Fractions preserve a few conventional learned forms, especially dècim, centèsim, and mil·lèsim.
Common Mistakes
1. Leaving an ordinal invariant.
❌ Les dos primer corredores ja han arribat.
Incorrect — the cardinal and ordinal must match the feminine plural noun.
✅ Les dues primeres corredores ja han arribat.
The first two runners have already arrived.
2. Copying English order for “the first three.”
❌ He revisat els primers tres informes.
Unnatural neutral order — the cardinal normally precedes the ordinal.
✅ He revisat els tres primers informes.
I've reviewed the first three reports.
3. Combining prenominal mig with the article of an identified whole.
❌ Vaig menjar mig el pastís de xocolata.
Incorrect — mig directly determines an unanchored unit and cannot precede el in this structure.
✅ Vaig menjar la meitat del pastís de xocolata.
I ate half of the chocolate cake.
4. Making a label cardinal feminine.
❌ Trobaràs el mapa a la pàgina dues.
Incorrect — a cardinal used as a label is invariant.
✅ Trobaràs el mapa a la pàgina dos.
You'll find the map on page two.
5. Giving a compositional multiplier the specialist feminine form.
❌ Els tres països van signar una tripla aliança.
Incorrect for a three-member alliance — compositional triple is gender-invariable.
✅ Els tres països van signar una triple aliança.
The three countries signed a three-party alliance.
Key Takeaways
Ordinals agree and normally precede the noun; cardinals used as labels follow it and remain invariant. Mig/mitja directly determines a unit, while la meitat de selects half of an identified whole. Fractional denominators are usually substantives followed by de. Multipliers distinguish scaled magnitude, which may use an optional specialist feminine, from obligatorily invariant descriptions of how many components something contains.
Now practice Catalan
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning Catalan →Related Topics
- Ordinal NumbersA2 — Form and use Catalan ordinals with agreement, standard abbreviations, Roman numerals, and natural cardinal alternatives.
- Fractions, Decimals, and PercentagesA2 — Express Catalan fractions, decimal values, and percentages with correct agreement, vocabulary, and notation.
- Measurements, Money, and ApproximationA2 — Express measurements, prices, temperatures, and approximate quantities in Catalan with correct agreement, decimal punctuation, and unit notation.
- Molt, Poc, Tant, and QuantA2 — Distinguish agreeing Catalan quantity determiners from invariant degree adverbs, and use tant, tan, quant, and de correctly.
- Ordering Multiple DeterminersB2 — Build complex Catalan noun phrases by ordering focus words, totality, articles, demonstratives, possessives, quantifiers, and numerals.
- Adjective AgreementA1 — Learn how Catalan adjectives match a noun in gender and number, including four-form, two-form, and common spelling patterns.